Chapter 5: Keep holiday shoppers and employees extra-safe in your store

Publish your safety practices and precautions online. Help shoppers feel safe by being transparent and communicative with updates as the COVID-19 landscape evolves.

Use broadcast advertising to disseminate timely, important information en masse, such as updated store hours. It’s ideal for reaching as many shoppers as possible with information that is too pressing for email, phone, or social media.

Lastly, distribute trusted information through a personalized self-service resource center as well. 

Sixty-two percent of people would personally require social distancing measures to be in place prior to returning to a store. Regularly check CDC and state guidelines, along with safety resources available through the NRF.

Lessen the chance of shoppers congregating. Minimize floor displays and overall merchandise, especially near the store’s launch zone and entrance points, keeping more products in the back for fulfillment. Create visible safeguards with floor markers for social distancing. Limit seating areas. And provide clear signage to keep shoppers safe.

Launch a Workplace Command Center to monitor, adjust, and manage your offices and store locations based on public and private data. Survey team members with the Employee Wellness Check and gain insight into wellness data by geography, location, and workforce health status in a simple dashboard. Plus, customize surveys based on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines.

Gather qualitative data as well. Ask team members how they are feeling going into the holidays and about their experiences throughout the season. Use this as an opportunity to identify areas for improvement, such as a process.

Provide every store employee with a high-quality face mask and gloves. Have extra on hand whenever they need new ones and keep PPE available for shoppers too.

Sixty-five percent of people expect stores to provide hand sanitizer during this time, and that may never change. Put hand-sanitizing stations in high-traffic areas, including your store entrance, fitting rooms, and checkout. Use disinfecting wipes on surfaces after every customer interaction as well.

In addition to special hours, use tools like Waitlist (formerly known as Lightning Scheduler and launching August 2020) to give shoppers the option to book appointments for their holiday shopping. This allows you to better manage capacity and assures shoppers that your store is adhering to safety guidelines.

Reduce the number of interactions at the cash wrap with contactless payment options. Update your POS systems to accept mobile wallets (Apple Pay and PayPal), wearables, and tap-and-go credit cards. Consider self-checkout and a contactless return kiosk, which Nordstrom put in place in 2019 for shoppers to easily return items on their own.

Be sensitive to each employee’s situation. They may be caring for a loved one or have a pre-existing condition. Offer flexible hours and, if available, the option for overtime. Optimize schedules with a Shift Management capability for better visibility into capacity and planning. Employees also have control over their availability, so managers can stagger and schedule shifts based on who is able to work.

This is a holiday season like no other, so ensure everyone in your store is in good spirits. Set sales targets for employees in which winners receive a reward. Offer friends and family discounts or shopping hours. Give special shoutouts to employees who go the extra mile every day. Shoppers who know companies support their employees’ health and wellbeing are more likely to purchase and build loyalty.